Blacklight
by Twilit Writers
Summary: As Link returns to Ordon, he learns of a new power that threatens the Twilight and he must help combat it. Though he can see Midna whom he misses dearly, it's only a one way trip... A collaboration between VOTH and MoreThanPuppyLuv. Midna X Link
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Link clutched the reins of Epona hard in his hand, so hard that his knuckles had turned the color of bone in the icy wind. The skin over them was beginning to dry, crack and bleed, but he didn't notice, nor did he pay mind to his incredible soreness from riding all day. All of his muscles screamed at him to stop, but he could not hear them. His joints had become stiff and rigid, and his bones popped frequently. The features around him were nothing but a blur as they rushed past him

In his left hand he held onto the shard of the mirror that had fallen at his feet. He clung to it for dear life, so hard that it dug into his skin, causing blood to slowly drip from in between his fingers. He did not notice this either. His body was on autopilot as he dashed through the Hylian Plains, for his mind was not in his body anymore. It was deep within the darkness of his thoughts, saturating its self in the waters that had run black with sorrow and anguish.

He was so sorry. He was so sorry that he hadn't told her what had really gone through his mind when he held her in his arms. He was sorry that he kept how he felt when he saw her alive after Ganondorf had been slain. He wanted to tell her that she was beautiful, he wanted to run up to her and wrap his arms around her, he wanted to look into her amber eyes and convey what he couldn't say in words. But all he did was let out a muffled gasp. And now, because of his inaction, he would be cursed by the very thought of her.

"Midna…" he whispered softly. His voice, however, would be heard by none as it was swept away by the wind. Everything was hopeless now. He felt like he had nothing to live for. Even though the world had been protected, he was left in ruins, and the only thing that could save him had left for the Twilight Realm with no possible way of returning.

Finally, after a long day of riding, the spring near the small town of Ordon was just behind him and the narrow road into the town itself was just in sight. There he could see the tomboyish Ilia awaiting his return, her upper half and lower half in completely different positions. Her hands were cradling each other and met just before her heart, but her legs were wide set like a man would stand, firm and planted to the ground.

He dreaded coming back, but he couldn't just let all of his friends sit there and worry about him. And now, because of his decision, he had to face Ilia. They had had a crush on each other for the longest time, but during the journey Link's opinion of her had changed from puppy love into feeling of siblinghood instead. He still loved her, just not the way that she loved him. Well, if you could even call it that. It was something he called immature love, something that young people could only speculate about until they really felt it.

Link, on the other hand, had found something more… real. He had gone through everything with Midna. They had traveled to the farthest reaches of Hyrule, fought for life at one another's side, and more than anything, stay true to one another in the direst of situations. Like two trees planted next to one another they had merged into a single being, their roots entangled with one another's and their trunk being of the same wood. Without one, though, the other would die. And in this way was he tied to her. With her gone, what would happen to him?

As Ilia raised her hand to wave at Link, however, everything around him suddenly stopped and turned into a pale blue. The wind around him just ceased to blow, and the air became bitterly cold. Before him stood the ghost warrior who had taught him his beautiful flowing maneuvers. Link ground Epona to a halt and dismounted. He walked closer to him, drawing his sword, but the ghost warrior merely lowered his head and held out his hand to stop him. "No," he said in his deep, booming voice, "It is not about a new combat maneuver this time. It is of much more dire urgency."

Link cocked his head slightly. "What do you mean?" he asked, his voice raspy and crackly from his crying and its discontinued use throughout the day.

"Patience, boy. Before I say anything, I want you to know who I really am." His voice was much sterner than all of the other times they had met, where he had sounded like a teacher. "I am, or was, Link, the Hero of Time."

The younger Link looked up at him in awe. "What is all of this about? Why are you telling me this?"

"Because," he said, "I want you to know who you are." He held out his hand and before it appeared a window which showed different parts of Hyrule and places he had not yet seen. "We are of a long line of heroes that have been chosen by the gods," he explained. "Whenever a new threat arises or when one is anticipated, they choose one person to grow up in relative solitude until they are called upon in their early years to combat the evil that has emerged. I was the one to battle Ganondorf just before he was sent to the Twilight realm. You, my boy, are the hero that has transcended time to kill him." He then closed his bony hand, making the image disappear.

Link looked at his own gloved hands. He was not just given power by the gods, he was _chosen_ for who he was, for his _self_. "Well, if I'm that amazing, then there must be some way to bring Midna back, or for me to get to her!"

"That, young one, is why I have come to you now." His serious voice became one of sternness. "Midna's shattering of the mirror was not planned. There is a great evil expanding its influence in the light world solely for the purpose of destroying all that exists in the Twilight Realm. It can move back and forth freely between the two worlds, and you were meant to meet him in the Twilight Realm through use of the Mirror. However…" His eyes turned downcast. "With no mirror, there is no way to defend the other realm."

Link's view suddenly turned to the dark, bloody shard in his left hand. "Midna…" he said under his breath.

The ghost nodded. "Yes, she will be dead."

His head shot up when he said that. "You're lying!" he yelled, "She has the power of the ancestors! She could…"

"Hush boy!" the ghost yelled with such command that Link himself cowered beneath its might. Once he had determined that the young farm boy had hushed up, he cracked his spine in a few places and continued. "This army is much too powerful to deal with without the strength she needs. And right now, this strength can only be offered by you." He then opened his palm again, revealing the window. Inside of it he could see Midna on her throne, her head in her hands, weeping tears of diamond, the kind that had shattered the mirror. Now, however, they were nothing more than small bits of stone that fell lightly to the ground. "Even now, she grieves without you. She may have enough power to rival them, but in the state she is in, she does not have the will. And even if she could , victory is highly unlikely."

Link could only stare in agony as he watched her cry. He wanted to be there to wipe them away, but he could do nothing for her except for watch. He felt hot tears begin to roll down his face as he collapsed to the ground. However, the ghost walked over, his metal armor clinking, and picked his tear up off of his face. He then cocked his head in interest at the tear. "This is very odd indeed," he said, a hint of interest in his voice. "Look at this." He knelt down to Links level, holding his bony finger only about a foot from his face.

Link looked back up, tears rolling down his face. Before him was a small diamond liken to the ones that littered the ground before Midna. "Is that…?"

"This is your tear," he said, placing it in Link's hand. "The only reason I can think of for this happening is that you transformed into a wolf so many times that you have become part Twili." The ghost stood back up. "Take off your shirt, young creature of darkness."

Link reluctantly obeyed and looked at his body. He suddenly gasped when he saw a glowing line of light blue running from his right shoulder to his sternum. His face went pale as the fact sunk into his mind. He was… becoming a shadow creature… A creature like Midna.

"This is much better news than you may think. With you in this state, there may be a way to get you to the Twilight Realm. Give me the shard in your hand."

Link was hesitant to give it up, but eventually he dropped it into the ghost's hand. It examined the shard for a minute then knelt down in front of Link. "This may hurt, but just bear with me." He began to slice his flesh in patterns that resembled those that covered Midna. Eventually he had them on his arms and legs, his stomach, and one that ran from his forehead down around his right eye and ended at his collarbone. Then, with great strength, the ghost stabbed it into his forehead.

Link felt no pain at the final action, only a strange dizziness and numbness all over his body. With a slow exhalation of breath, he fell forward onto the ground, his face turned out to the side. Slowly, the shard slipped into his head, and he began to change.

It began with the symbols etched all over his body emanating their light blue color, but then other features began to show their selves. His skin grew darker and darker until his body was completely black, and his clothes changed into black along with it. The Master Sword strapped to his back fell off and began to change as well. A crack appeared straight down the middle of the scabbard and fell apart, leaving the sword naked on the ground. It began to glow interchangeably between red and blue, the metal morphing until it resembled a large metal flame. His shield remained unchanged except that the markings on the front, which were replaced with the blue lines, with a golden Triforce symbol in the center.

Link groggily forced himself off of the ground and stared the ghost in the eye. He did nothing but turn the window in his hand into a mirror, which Link was able to view his new self in. He stared at it for a few moments, a look of shock and horror etched across his face. Slowly he fell to his knees, staring at his new hands. He was… a Twili… he was like Midna… Suddenly, he felt an awkward sort of happiness and fear swim through his veins.

The ghost looked down at him and nodded, which was the closest thing an expressionless face can do to a smile. "I believe," he said, "With your special condition and the power of the shard, you may be able to travel to the Twilight realm."

Link looked up at him excitedly. This was amazing news! He could see Midna and save her! But he had another question burning in his mind. "How did you know that would happen?" he asked.

"That is of no consequence. But Link…" he said with a hint of disappointment in his voice, "It is true that you can go to the Twilight Realm again with the power of the shard, but I'm afraid that you will only be able to go one way. Once you go, you can never come back. Your sword will stay the same, but you will not, and therefore will not be able to travel back home."

Link swiped his hand in front of him as though brushing away a fly. "I don't care!" he exclaimed, "I want… no, I _need_ to go. Now!"

The ghost held out his hand. "Patience, young one. This new threat is much greater than any other you have faced. It is a near infinite and very powerful army, and for that reason you will need my experience. Take your sword in hand, young hero."

As he picked his sword up he noticed that it was much lighter than before, and he could swing it much faster. He also felt some sort of strange energy running through it, a power that he could not fathom. His shield was exactly the same way.

"You hold in your hand the Sword of Twili, whose power is greater than the Master Sword's by tenfold, its attack, deadly, its power, unmatched. Now you carry it."

Link became too excited again. "With this then, I could just take down whatever I needed to!"

_Patience!"_ the ghost boomed in his commanding voice, "You have a long time before you must travel there. One month, in fact. I want you to meet me in the spirit spring every day for the next two weeks. We have much training to do between now and the time of your travel. I will teach you how to harness the sword's power and the skills you will need to master it. Until tomorrow, young fighter."

"Wait!" the young man called out, "I have so much to ask you! You can't go yet!" But he was already gone, and the color of the world around him had already turned back to normal. Ilia was running over to him, her hands waving in the air. "Link!" she called out, "You're finally home!"

He knew that she couldn't see him like this; he had to get away. The sword reacted on its own to his panic, and he began to break off into tiny pieces of shadow and disappeared into the sky.

He found himself in the basement of his home, black and empty. "Did I just…?" he muttered. He looked over himself, but all he could see were the blue symbols on his body. He was all there though, and he let out a sigh of relief.

He had no idea what to think, so his mind wandered everywhere. What was this new enemy? What kind of strength did they wield? What kinds of powers did his new sword have? What kinds of new powers did _he_ have? And most of all, how would he face everyone in Ordon before he left? His roots were here, all of his friends were here, his _life_ was here. He wished that there was an easier way, but there wasn't. Finally, the riding and the shock all caught up with him and he fell to the floor.

Just before he lost consciousness, he had a single organized thought: 'Midna… I can see you again… Midna…'


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Link awoke to find himself sprawled across the floor, his shield face down on one side of him and the Master Sword, now altered by the ancient magic of the twili, on the other side. Slowly and quietly he lifted himself into a sitting position and assessed his situation and his surroundings, which were barely lit by the light from the entrance to the basement.

He remembered how the ghost warrior… or more accurately, the old hero chosen by the goddesses, had instructed him to meet him in Ordona's spring to train. So, he pushed himself up lightly and stretched, letting a yawn seep out of his mouth. Then, rubbing his eyes groggily, he bent over and picked his sword and shield up from the ground and made his way over to the ladder. He figured that a few minutes in the sun to help him wake up wasn't a bad idea, so he climbed up the long line of ladders to his bed and sat down on the edge, soaking up the rays like a sponge.

As he enjoyed the warmth though, he came to a realization. This was one of the last times he would ever see the sun, or the blue sky, or white, billowy clouds again. It was beginning to set in that all of this world's beauty would be replaced with something, in his eyes, much bleaker. He hated that thought. But did he have a choice? He was the one chosen for this. He was _born_ for it. He could not just turn it down.

However, even with the sun shining down on him, he felt cold. Not because of what he had transformed into, but because the most important person in the world to him was not there. He felt detached ever since she left. He missed her more than he could ever miss the light world, no matter how long he would be away from it. It was worth seeing her again… Her… Midna.

After he decided that thinking about her would only hinder his abilities, he climbed back down and peeked through the door before seeing that the coast was clear. Then, like a shadow, he crept to the spring where he saw the ghost warrior. However, what he was doing was something he did not ever expect to see. He sat off to the side of the pool, his back against the natural wall. In his hands he held a small flesh colored wind instrument of some kind in the shape of a potato. He sat there playing a beautiful melody, his bony fingers reaching across the small flute to cover the holes as he played. The notes seemed like words forming a sad song that played into the infinite heavens, only to have them echo back to him. Then, somewhat abruptly, he stopped and looked up at Link. "Hello young lad, are you ready for our first day of training?"

"Of course," he said, nodding, his voice cool and calm as it always was. He was always cool and collected, ready to face whatever came at him, and so he prepared himself for their first lesson.

"I want you to close you eyes, young lad," the Hero of Old spoke. Link did what he was told, but after a few moments he began to feel ridiculous. He opened his mouth to make a comment, but the warrior beat him to it. "The world around you is alive, always making sounds in the most dead of silence; a drop of water falling from a stalactite, the wind blowing past your ears. Hear the beating of a bird's wings or the splashing of the waterfall. Limit your focus to one object and one object only and keep your eyes shut. I am going to move from the spot I am now. As I unsheathe my sword, I want you to turn in the direction you hear the noise." Link nodded in understanding and waited for the sound to emit.

He squeezed his eyes together, trying to block out the sounds of the springs and all the animals around him. There! Shortly after the old warrior spoke he heard the sound of his rough, worn sword scraping against the tainted scabbard. Focusing all of his energy on discerning its direction, he made a 180-degree turn to face the sound, or where he thought it was coming from. "Open your eyes," the warrior spoke out to him. Link did so and found the corners of his lips creasing upwards. The Old Hero was standing right before him, with his sword pointed to the ground at his side. "This is vital in fighting your enemies, Young Hero. Limiting your awareness to one sound or movement at a time can allow you to dispatch the enemy faster. Fighting is more than just seeing the blade and the target," he explained, "It involves all of your senses. I want you to try it again, but this time I will muffle the sound."

Link once again closed his eyes and waited for the scraping noise. He couldn't even predict how long he waited for the noise, and his patience was running very thin. Just when Link's mind was about to shut down for boredom a faint scraping sound entered his ear. It was far away and hard to make out the location, but he could discern that it was clearer and louder in his left ear, so he turned slightly in that direction. He made several more quick adjustments before finally stopping and opening his eyes. He found that he was close, but still about thirty degrees too far to the left. He was very disappointed when he noticed this. However, the warrior was reassuring. "Very good for a second try. Worry not about this failure, we have two weeks to perfect this. Now, we are going to go off a little bit and do something else for the rest of the day. Take your sword in hand." Link quickly brought his sword out and waited for the ghost warrior's movements. "Patience," said the Old Hero, "Relax. All I want you to do is mimic my movements."

The warrior held out both his arms as far as they stretched. He then brought them together, so he was now holding his sword with both hands. The warrior brought them up just to the right of his face as if he were about to perform a jump strike, then brought them back to the first position and held it for a few seconds. After a few moments, he did the same thing, but to the left of his face. After that, the movements they performed were indescribable. It slowly added more elements, the twirling of the blade in the hand, pseudo blocks and attacks; it looked like a river winding its way through a valley. It was practically a work of art, and they performed to their invisible audience until twilight began to descend onto the land. It would only be a matter of time before it was a permanent fixture in Link's life. And strangely, none of these movements felt odd. "This dance," said the warrior, "Has no fixed pattern or set of movements you must perform. The only thing you must master is the feeling of it coursing through your body, the way your muscles tense and relax. Your body is a tool, learn to wield it." Soon, the first star had appeared in the night sky, and they adjourned from their first session.

The warrior's final words rang in Link's mind as they walked away. "This is an exercise you must absolutely master if you wish to triumph against your foes, it is the most important skill I will teach you through our two weeks together. For if you do not master it, many innocents could very easily become casualties." Casualties? Link pondered how a simple exercise could hold the lives of many people. The warrior's words confused him. What could he possibly mean?

He looked at the sword in his hand and recalled the old words of his mentor Rusl. "The lessons I am teaching you give you power. Not magical power or power like a king or queen, but the power to decide who lives and who dies. You decide this by how skilled you become with your sword. If you use your power for good, you can help those you love see another day. However, the other side of this…" He then decided that the day was too good to be ruined by talking about dark subjects, and they finished their walk home in silence, enjoying the scenery.

He then realized what the warrior was trying to convey. The stronger he was, the better he could defend the Twili… The better he could defend Midna. Just the thought of her brought him heartache, so he tried to keep her off of his mind as he walked into his empty house. He needed time to relax, and he could learn from the warrior better if he was rested.

He decided that, even though he longed for his warm, cozy bed, the basement was where he had to stay, for now at least. If someone came in his house while he was asleep, he wouldn't want them seeing him the way he was now. At least not yet.

As he entered his house he took a good look at his sword which seemed to glow with a black light. The light was warm and inviting as opposed to peoples' natural response to darkness. He climbed down the ladder slowly and sat down, facing the moonlit hole in the ceiling, observing the pattern made by the ladder and the moon. Setting his sword down beside him, he lay on his back, placed his arm beneath his head, and did his best to fall asleep.

The memory of Midna dogged him, however, and no matter what position he was in, he could not get comfortable. Even with the fact that he would see her soon soothing him, sleep evaded him. He wanted to see her so badly. However, he knew that if he wanted to grow powerful, to defend her, he must rest. In this manner did he finally trick himself into rest as he lay staring at the black ceiling.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Link woke up sore and slightly disgruntled the next morning. Everything that had happened seemed so surreal as he suddenly became aware of it; his changed body, Midna, and the inability to let anyone else besides the ghost warrior see him. However, the flame-like sword at his side acted as a reminder to him that he truly was there. It was hard to believe that the master sword made the strange transformation, but sometimes the blade seemed to have its own consciousness: one made of purity and righteousness. It would not just let a dark entity, such as the twilight, into itself without good reason. And as far as he could tell, the sword knew that he would need the power that the mirror shard offered, even though it was of shadow and it's self of light.

Its bearer gave way to an amused smirk. Light and darkness had become one. Wasn't light supposed to be the symbol for peace and dark the symbol of destruction? He realized how cheesy he was beginning to sound and cast the thought aside as he picked up his sword and made his way for the ladder He stopped himself, however, when he heard someone singing above him. He recognized the voice well: it was Ilia's. He peeked out of the hole and saw her up on his bed, watching the sunrise and offering her sweet melody to it. He was able to catch the very end:

"The day will rise, the night will fall,And life is fleeting yet,And though the shadows all grow tallI have but only one regret.

Before he said that last goodbyeI'd something left to say,'I love you more than great blue skiesOr life to which I pray.

'I love you more than riding horses,I remember, you showed me how.I love you more than I can show,'But it's far too late now."

As he listened to that final stanza he could feel himself pale as though he were still in his normal color skin. It hurt him so much to hear what he had done to her, what he will do to her in not even two weeks. She would be crushed when she learned that he didn't love her. But it was just the way it was. And he was guilty for it. He felt like it was wrong to love someone other than Ilia after knowing that they were going to be together forever for so long, but here he was, doing that exact thing. Her misery was his fault, down to the last tear. But even if he went to her now, and if that strange force didn't attack, and if she didn't reject him because of what he had become, and if they were married and lived together for the rest of their lives, even then, it would all be a lie. Even if he tried to force himself to love her, he wouldn't be able to let go of Midna. And so it would be a curse on both of them. He couldn't keep a lie like that from Ilia, they knew each other too well for that.

And so he crept back into the shadows and waited for the sound of her leaving before climbing the ladder up into the light of day once again. He waited a few minutes before he opened the door to make sure she was gone and made his way back to the spring. As predicted, the warrior was waiting there for him. However, he had a different air around him this time. It wasn't melancholy or reminiscent, but rather conveyed sorrow. He slowly unhinged his jawbones to speak to Link.

"I know how you feel," he said. "The exact same thing happened to me long ago."

Link looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?"

However, instead of responding, the warrior stood up, removing the sadness from his expression and replacing it with the same stiff, emotionless body and mind set that he was always in. "It is not of consequence. The importance of my being here is to train you, not to tell stories of the past." Link wanted to protest and insist that he reveal his secret, but he had to admit that the warrior was right. Training was what they had to worry about now, but even so, the weight of guilt was pulling down on his shoulders. With every step he took, the song she sang played itself over and over again in his mind.

"Boy!" the ghost warrior yelled, shocking Link out of his trance, "You must concentrate on the task at hand! I need your full attention for this next part."

Link wanted to protest, but as he opened his mouth to speak, he stopped. He had to get a grip on himself. This was not the time for emotion to get in the way. Even so, he couldn't remove the feelings pressing on him. He did his best to conceal them, it was the best he could do for now.

"What we learn from now on will focus on honing your abilities with that blade," he explained, pointing at the transformed Master Sword. "That blade has potent power, but without the proper instruction, it is just a sharp hunk of metal, just as a sword is without training and courage. Now is when the real instruction begins."

The training he underwent for the next two weeks were not that of the body, but of emotion and thought, for this was the way the Sword of Twilight worked. He was taught a series of moves that would activate these powers, and they would practice the precision of these actions for days on end. It was like water flowing through a channel: thought was the water, and the movements were the channel. The more he worked on how he focused his thought, the more potential the attack had, and the more he worked on the action, the more power of thought could be allowed to flow through.

Once one attack was learned, usually after two or three days, they would move onto the next one and practice that action. This was incredibly taxing on Link, so they would take a several hour break after finishing a new skill, allowing Ordona's healing waters to work on them. During these training sessions, especially during the relaxing periods, many questions were asked, including the question of how he knew so much about the blade. He learned that the ghost, in his ethereal form, could not only see a magical item, but its powers as well. Link thought back to Shad and imagined that he would love that, especially with how much trouble he had put into discovering the mystery of the Dominion Rod and the statues.

At last the final day of training had come and there was only one week and one day until the mysterious dark force attacked the Twilight Realm. On this day the Ghost Warrior told him not to do any training, for he would have to prepare for the trip ahead of him. Not only for the actual using of the dark power, but mentally for having to leave the light world forever, as well as seeing Midna. If he was not prepared in these ways, he may as well be useless when he actually got there.

"Young boy," the Ghost Warrior said to Link on the final day as they were resting in the waters of the spring, "I may not be the one that should be telling you this, but I do believe that you are a man now."

Link sat up and looked at the warrior. "I never thought you were one for that kind of sappy father thing. Up until now you've been pretty hard to get through to. No pun intended."

For the first time, the old hero gave a laugh. "Well, anyways, I wasn't ever one for sappy discussions, so here." From his bony hand slid the small blue flute he had been playing on day two of training. "This, young man, is the Ocarina of Time. It was taken from me by my Zelda, but for some reason when I awoke in this form it was in my hand. It even has the little scratch I accidentally gave it a long time ago. See?" He pointed to a small spot beneath the mouth piece. The old Link could be likened to a child discovering an old toy that was buried beneath all of his other ones. Sure enough, the scratch was there.

"I don't understand," asked the young Link, "Why are you giving this to me?"

"Well, for a couple of reasons. I want you to have that to remember me by. When you lack courage, which I'm certain you will not, just hold onto the Ocarina and play a tune. You'll find it comes quite naturally. Plus," He gave a little giggle, which was totally out of character for him, "I always thought of it as my good luck charm wherever I went. Maybe a little bit of the luck will be passed on down to you." He attempted a wink at Link.

"Lucky?" Link laughed, "You're a ghost. What kind of luck is that?"

The old warrior put on a false voice of anger. "Hey, I was lucky enough to stick around and help save the two worlds. If that isn't good luck, I don't know what is."

Link gave a smile and looked down at the Ocarina. "Well, maybe I'll get lucky enough to keep you company as a ghost." They shared a hearty laugh, then lay back and stared up at the sky until the stars began to peek out from behind their black veil and the moon shone brightly as the treetops tickled its underbelly. "Before we parted ways for the last time," said the old ghost, his voice taking on a more serious tone, "I wanted to remind you of something. Your friends should know what happened to you at the very least."

It was dawn of the morning that he was to set off, but his mind was restless. What would he say to all of the Ordonians? No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't come up with a list of things to say. And so, he made the decision to just let it flow. Quickly. He couldn't do it any other way, he was just plain bad at long speeches. He marched into town with his sword in his hand, not even making an attempt at covering his face and hands. "Ilia," he whispered to himself, "I'm sorry."

At first nobody noticed him; everyone was either in bed or too concentrated on their work. So, he climbed the small pillar of stone that stood in the middle of the village on which grew the rare whistling grass that could call down birds. But instead of playing that, he took out the old warrior's Ocarina flute and began to play a slow, beautiful melody which was carried by the wind, its high notes, its low notes, seeping into every house, into every crevice, until all became aware of his presence. First was the shopkeeper's husband, who shouted "Link's home! Link's home!" when he saw him. This got the attention of everyone in earshot, and those that could not hear were fetched and brought over to see the young boy returning, but something about him seemed different; was his skin black? In several minutes the whole village had gathered around the pillar where the young hero stood, his Ocarina song finally finishing.

It was dead silent around him. Not a bird chirped, not a bug buzzed, not a person whispered. Not even Ilia was saying anything as he began.

"Everyone," he began, faltering a little, "I'm not really sure what to say. I've been everywhere, seen everything that Hyrule has to offer and a little bit more. It's fairly easy to tell that I've changed since I last saw you, and not just in my thoughts and actions and skin. My emotions have changed as well. But I still love you all as much as I did when I left." He lowered his voice so that Ilia was the only one that could hear him. "Well… almost as much." he said, his voice showing sorrow and regret. Her face turned to one of shock and sudden sadness.

It sounded like he was giving a farewell speech. He couldn't be… No! She began desperately climbing the vines, climbing up to him. She wanted to hold him, to love him, to kiss him as she would have before he left the first time. She didn't want to see him go. Not after she had just gotten him back.

"I only have one thing to say before I leave. I'm not coming back, and I will miss you all. Goodbye." He then held his sword up over his head and the black in his skin began to melt away like water, seeping out of him, and collected around the blade.

"Link! Wait!" Ilia called out. She began to climb faster and she was just about to reach him. Then, just like Midna had done a hundred times before, he was carried off into the sky in small black pieces. Ilia got to the top just in time to see the last bits of shadow disappear.

"Link," she whispered as a tear gently trickled down her face. "This isn't truly goodbye. I'll find you and bring you back home. I promise."


	4. Chapter 4

Midna sighed as she stared out the blank, empty window from her desk which she had resituated to its new spot. She needed all of the fresh air she could get right now, the last two weeks had been torture for her. Her mind had been racing, and she had hardly been given the chance to concentrate on the mounds of forms and papers to be signed, reviewed, shipped out, and the meetings she had attended and had to keep in mind as she went through her paperwork...

If only Link were here. He would have made a point to make her feel more relaxed and comfortable. Link… Her gaze fell from the vista outside the window onto the desk with its mounds of paperwork. She shoved them all to the side of her desk and rested her elbows on it, holding her head and covering her eyes. She felt a small tear make its salty stream down her cheek and fall into her hands as she imagined him over her shoulder, comforting her with his soft voice. How could she have just let him go like that!

_Calm down, Midna. It was for the greater good. We can't have emotion in the way of your judgment._ Midna had kept telling herself that over the past couple of days, but nothing she could say, nothing she could think, would help. She felt guilty for leaving her friends hope that she could come back then smashing the mirror into uncountable pieces. And she couldn't leave behind the feelings that lingered in her mind.

_**What feelings? He never even loved you back, so why should you care!** _Midna's head was doing a good job of finding things to help her focus on her ruling. But, her heart begged to differ.

_You know you love him, don't deny it!_Her heart argued, _Think about all you've been through, it's pointless to try to forget him, he'll always be a part of you._

_**You can't think about him now! He's gone forever and you need to focus on your ruling your people, not on what could have been! You know why you did it! Even if you could see him again, you couldn't be together!**_

_Nothing is impossible, Midna. You can break impossible boundaries with a strong enough emotion._

Midna had thoroughly confused herself with this internal fight. Which one should she follow, her head or her heart? Everything each one said was true, but she couldn't listen to either one. She wanted to let go of Link and rule her people, it was the right thing and she should, but no matter what she did, she couldn't force herself to. Midna desperately wanted to stay with Link, but her people needed her! Her feelings were not worth abandoning a country; it would be more selfish than anything she could think of.

The level of stress her feelings raised her to was high enough, but the Council just made it worse. It was tiring to hear each and every one of the members argue about who knew what was best every time they met! The army should do this, the army should do that. We should invest more time in this project, it would be a waste... Why couldn't they just freakin' agree on something and call it a day! Especially with what happened this morning…

"_No! No! No! We cannot have the workers get that many benefits!" Erantaur had angrily replied, slamming his fist down onto the table. Midna silently groaned. This was the fifth time he did not agree with anyone's arguments. The other six members were thinking the same thing, apparently. One of them, Arawynna, had the courage to speak up._

"_If we don't something soon, the union will riot! The last thing we need is for a divided kingdom during the reconstruction!" she had yelled, just as angry as him._

"_We are in the middle of recovering from Zant's destruction! We can't afford the-"_

"_QUIET!" Midna interrupted, creating a complete silence within the conference chamber._ _She continued after a few breaths._ _"All you have done this morning is re-state what you have already said a hundred times over! Nobody has lied at all this morning, so why are you all bickering?! Why don't we just give them SOME of the benefits and call it a day?" she huffed, crossing her arms to add to her point. Erantaur, though, wasn't going to give up without a fight._

"_Princess, the workers serve under you. They wouldn't dare go against their princess and your word is law to them! If you say no, they will accept gracefully and continue working without a fit!" he said. Midna's eyes narrowed even further. She was about to breath fire._

"_I am a princess who serves the people, not a dictator that takes advantage of them." Erantaur sat back down so quickly that his chair almost cracked under the impact._

"_You wouldn't last a day as Queen if you try to do what's best for everyone," he mumbled under his breath. Even though it was in such a low voice, Midna had heard it. She tried her best to ignore it, but she couldn't help but feel that she screwed everything up already. The morning was made even worse when the topic of the Twili goats were brought up…_

Midna just had enough of it. She let her tears flow freely from her face and didn't even attempt to wipe them away. The pressures of royalty were catching up to her now and she couldn't handle it. One little error could cause her whole kingdom to collapse or another incident like Zant to reoccur. The pressure is increased even further when she has to redeem the royal family and make up for its past mistakes. If only Link were here. They always worked better together, helping each other do things for another.

Midna thought back to Erantaur's last words. She would be a queen! Of course she has to do what's best for the people. That's what it's all about. But then, she thought back to the mirror chamber. She thought, no, she knew, that this was better for both realms, for the light and the dark. Emotion could be the best thing in your life, but at the same time it can drive people to do the unspeakable. The tears had stopped coming, but the salty streams lay prominent on her face. _Why does everything always have to go so wrong…, _Midna thought to herself. _Next thing you'll know, someone will fall out of the sky and just-_

Her musings was interrupted by screams of terror and confusion. She quickly stood up and peered out her window to see many civilians running around and screaming their heads off. She could barely make out a figure that was lying in a heap on the ground. Deciding to investigate the matter, Midna hurried outside.

_Who dare break the peace that has finally settled? When I get my hands on them, they'll be sorry that they ever knew me!_ She knew that "breaking the peace' was only an excuse for someone, anyone, to bother her at all, but she didn't care. She was sick of giving reasons right now. She raced down the stairs into the courtyard in front of her palace, not bothering to apologize to anyone she accidentally bumped into. She was just about to reach the problem when a crowd so conveniently blocked her path. She became even angrier, pushing and shoving her way through, not realizing that she could demand the attentions of all of them. Guess she wasn't used to being royalty yet.

"Get out of my way. I said get out of my way! Alright, who do you think you are that you can disrupt my king…dom…." Midna, who stood in total shock, had barely finished her sentence before she felt the blood rush out of her face; before her lay Link, serene and peaceful with a strange, flame-like sword placed on his chest as though he were a fallen soldier. Of all people to show up, she thanked the goddesses that it wasn't an invasion, even through the panic it caused. However, she thanked the goddesses even more for who it _was_. She quickly hushed them and attempted to pick Link up in her arms. When that didn't work, she crouched down and laid a hand over his chest. She said the command word and they both warped to her private quarters in the castle,

Where Midna gently laid Link on her bed. He seemed so weak and exhausted. His body was horribly limp, his face totally pale and cold as she brushed his cheek with her hand. She inhaled sharply when she saw him stirring.

He slowly opened one and then the next, blinked several times, and attempted to assert where he was. Not recognizing his surroundings, he started to panic and grabbed his sword, forcing himself up and into as ready of a stance as you can be in when you're sitting down. Midna gave out a squeal of shock, forcing Link's attention to her.

Suddenly he dropped the sword onto the ground and stared at her. "M-Midna?" he stuttered, "is that you?" Link was being cautious. One could never know if someone was impersonating another. Midna blinked in shock at the fact that her friend was back and was here with her.

"Y…yes, it's me… H… how did you get here?" Midna was stuttering and stumbling over her words, but forced them out as best she could. The shock that gripped her heart squeezed tighter, making it hard to breathe. Link was rubbing the back of his neck and gave a disoriented look.

"It's… a long story. A very long one, but all that doesn't matter; all that does is that I am here," he said, not looking at her face, much to the relief of Midna. She didn't want to make eye contact with him. She feared that if she did, he would find out and expose her secret. But he was here now, that meant something right? She internally took a deep breath and gathered up every ounce of courage that she had.

"Link, there's something I want to tell you. Please look at me," there was desperation in her voice and that forced Link to make eye contact with her.

"Link, listen. I…"

**BOOM! **

The doors flew inwards, sending it off its hinges and onto the ground before the council, who had angrily stepped through what was left of the doorway and gave furious looks at Midna and Link.

"What's this I hear about a Light dweller in the palace?" Exclaimed Erantaur. A look of anger consumed his face, blocking out any other feature. The other six members of the council had looks of disapproval on their faces. "Who is this?" Erantaur spat out, pointing rudely at Link. Link, who was still very injured, gave a confused look. Midna, on the other hand, shot the angriest glare she could at Erantaur for three reasons. One: nobody talks that way to Link and Two: she was in the middle of a very important confession. Three: well, there is no three, but if there was, it'd be one heck of a good reason!

"His name is Link!" she snapped. "He is the one who saved your _sorry butts_ from being one of Zant's minions for the rest of your _sorry lives_!"

Erantaur walked over to Midna, his face just centimeters away from hers. "An emergency meeting has been called immediately," he hissed, venom lacing his words, "Be there." He turned around sharply and pushed his way through the rest of the council members, who gave Midna one last look before they followed in pursuit of Erantaur. Midna gave Link a sad look and sighed.

"What am I going to do?" she asked herself, sitting down in a nearby chair and placing her head in her hands. Link struggled to get up and limp slowly over to her. He was in pain, but he didn't care anymore. He had been gone for so long, and now he wanted to help her. He laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. She looked up at his bright face, the blonde hair, the soft blue eyes, which still held the ferocity of the wolf he once was. She could have sworn she saw a small pool of water build along his eyelid… She was about to lose herself in them until she noticed one of the council members standing in the doorway.

"Link... I have to go," she said, "Stay here and rest, please". Link was about to protest, but then he stopped and nodded solemnly. She began to lead him to her bed until the council member spoke out.

"Erantaur wanted to see him in the meeting chamber as well," he said.

Midna was sick of taking orders from Erantaur. She finished lying him down and walked over to the council member before brushing him off and walking toward the meeting room. "

Erantaur will have to get used to the idea of someone _not_ doing exactly what he says."  
He could curse Midna a thousand times over and she wouldn't care, as long as he didn't do the same to Link. _There'd be blood to pay if he did, _She thought angrily._  
_On her way, Midna quickly formulated a plan to stop Erantaur's wrath at once and make a mockery out of him while she was at it.

_He has been a plague on the council for too long. That son of a two-faced goat is going down._


	5. Chapter 5

Midna had just barely finished her devious plan to finally get Erantaur kicked out of the council for good when she had arrived at the meeting chambers. Each and every member of the council gave a look of accusation, in one form or another, at Midna. But, she never had a feeling of guilt or regret, not one bit. She sat down on her rightful throne in the meeting chamber and awaited one of them to speak up. It was, after all, the first step to get her plan rolling.

However, as confident in her plan as she was, her hands were trembling. It was finally beginning to sink in, the fact that Link had come back to her… The one person that had haunted her for the last two weeks, the one person that she thought she would never see again, she had touched with her own hands, laid her eyes on him. This only meant that she had to do her best to remain calm while her plan played itself out so he could stay, as opposed to being thrown off the cliff into the endless abyss below.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Erantaur spoke up, breaking the silence. It felt good knowing that he had put his own demise into motion. She enjoyed the irony.

Midna merely gave him a simple blank stare before she gave her answer.

"Absolutely nothing," she said. She appeared relatively calm, but the tension was beginning to eat her up inside. It was a simple plan, but she had to rely on how well she knew him and his terrible fits of anger. He narrowed his eyes down at her.

"Nothing? NOTHING? YOU HAVE NOTHING TO SAY! A LIGHT DWELLER is in the royal palace, more specifically in your PRIVATE CHAMBER and you have NOTHING TO SAY AT ALL?" His face was seething with anger, and not a single face on the council held approval for his outburst at the princess. 'Well,' thought Midna, 'he did it.'

The entire council watched and waited for Midna to start yelling at Erantaur, as it always went. However, the rebuttal never came. Her large amber eyes merely stared back at him calmly. This was more self-control than Midna had ever employed, but it didn't show one bit.

"Are you quite finished?" she asked Erantaur politely. He just sneered at her, waiting for another response that he could possibly overreact to.

"You should be informed that the light dweller happens to be the Hero that saved us all," she stated, "The blue-eyed beast, to be more specific." The entire room fell silent over her words, and it stayed that way for about half a minute. Finally, Arawynna, who could no longer stand the silence, decided to speak up for all of the council.

"You mean to say, your Highness, that this young boy is the one who bested Zant?" asked meekly, her face very timid, very child-like, yet very hopeful. The same could be said for the others, save for Erantaur. Midna merely nodded. If step one of her plan could sway the majority of the council, the rest could be convinced in a snap. All she needed to get rid of Erantaur was for one more of his outbursts...

He, of course, bursted out.

"Lies. All LIES!" Erantaur hissed. "No being of the light could be the sacred beast with blue eyes. Plus, why should YOU care about him? Even if he was, he is nothing more than a tool of prophecy!" He ranted on. The anger was boiling up in Midna and she desperately wanted to put Erantaur in his place. He was more than a tool, he was a person with a good and loving heart, something much more than Erantaur could say about himself. But she knew she couldn't say anything because if she blew up now, or if she showed any sign of weakness towards Link, she'd lose the council for sure. Then, Link would be a goner. Not even her royal status would be able to save him, so she desperately needed for this to work.

"Why couldn't he be the sacred beast?" she explained. "After all, not one in our realm has eyes that could slightly even resemble the color blue. Also, I, for one, have seen his transformations. If all of you were to bear witness, surely you would believe so," All of the council members nodded in approval, except Erantaur. Midna had gotten everyone who she needed to agree with her side, and then some. It was time to bring down this plague to the Twilight Realm once and for all.

"Erantaur, of course you wouldn't believe me. I mean, why trust the princess, right? She's just going to screw up and take the kingdom down with her, right? You, however, have been stacking your cards up to take over my position! Taking in bribes and threatening political parties just to have your way!" The other member of the council looked shocked, while Erantaur looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Midna hoped that the evidence she got was enough. It was the absolute perfect time to bring all of this to the table, now that the council is starting to doubt Erantaur. It was all about to go down the drain for him.

"Those accusations are preposterous! How dare you even claim such a thing!" Inside himself he was cursing and wondering how she had found out. Midna, on the other hand, was already much too far ahead of Erantaur for him to be able to do anything about it anymore.

"Don't deny it! You know those claims are true! I think these letters and documents are sufficient evidence," Midna had held up a stack of letters and passed them around. For the first time in his life, Erantaur was speechless. The other six members looked angered at him. Scratch that, anger wasn't enough to describe what they were feeling. They felt betrayed. Yes, that would describe them quite perfectly right now. Midna internally smiled as she finally got them to be on her side, at last.

"I was doing what was best for the council! What was best for the Twilight! If I hadn't, the royal family would have never been trusted again. Your ruling is unreasonable and why they picked you to be their princess is beyond me!" he raged.

Midna was angry, but she was done yelling at this _slime_. Now was the time to bask in her victory over this tyrant.

"You, my disgusting _parasite_, are no better than Zant. It's scum like _you_ that give the royal family a bad name in the first place. You've done it now, Erantaur. You can kiss your hopes of ever getting near a powerful position goodbye!" The air around Midna cracked with magic, manifesting itself as black lighting that struck the air around her as she finally lost her temper. Some invisible force began to drag Erantaur towards the door, but his planning had been done much farther ahead then Midna's.

"You shall regret not placing me as your king! You will! Cruciamentum!" He called out, but nothing appeared. "**Cruciamentum!**" he yelled again. Silence. Then, from out of nowhere, Link came crashing through the door, holding a disgusting, warped skull that somewhat resembled that of a lion's.

"What, you mean these?" he asked, throwing it down to the ground and smashing it, sending shards everywhere. Everyone in the room was in awe. Jaws dropped. Even Erantaur had stopped being forced out of the door. Link stood triumphantly, his sword in hand and his shield in the other.

"Oh, I'm sorry," he said sarcastically, "Were these yours?" he picked up a shard of the skull and shoved it into his palm, sharp side down, so that a good sized bit of it was lodged in his flesh. Purple blood began to seep out of it. "Let the scar that remains be a reminder to _never_ try to hurt Midna again."

Then, with seemingly no effort, he picked up Erantaur, struggling and kicking desperately like a child, and drew back his sword. "Midna?" he asked, "What do you want me to do with him? I can put him anywhere you like."

Midna was totally speechless.

"The… the dungeon will do just fine," she stuttered. And so, he threw Erantaur to the ground and did a couple of quick motions with his blade. Suddenly, the tyrant broke into a million little black pieces and was gone. Midna bowed to the rest of the council shakily.

"Meeting adjourned," she said as she grabbed Link by the arm, rushing him up to her chambers, kicking aside the bones of the tormentors as she ran past.

"You stupid beast," she said, looking at him in anger and surprise as they entered her room, "I told you to rest! How did you do all of that when you were so weak?"

Link, dropping his strong and warrior-like air, suddenly began to feel very dizzy and he collapsed like a rag doll, holding his side. Midna caught him just as he began to fall.

"Very painfully…" he muttered as he moved his hand to his eyes so he could see. Red blood covered his hand like paint. Midna gasped and pulled Link's shirt up to see. There were large bite marks just above his kidney, piercing all the way through his chain mail where a Cruciamentum had probably hit him. Blood was coming out like a river, and she didn't know what to do. She looked around at anything that could help, and then she saw her bed sheets. She tore a good sized piece off, shifted his tunic and chain mail shirt up and began to press on the wound with as much force as she could.

"Wh…what are you doing?" muttered Link faintly.

"I'm saving your life, you idiot. Why did you come to the council room? I told you to rest!"

"I just…felt like something was wro…" His last word was cut off as he choked on blood. It began to spill out of his mouth onto the ground, making a little red pool. Midna gasped, but continued to put pressure on his wound.

"Help!" she yelled, sounding helpless, "Help! Somebody!"

One of the servant girls came by and looked at Link and took a sharp intake of breath.

"You!" she yelled, putting on her tough persona again, "Get some medical help, now!"

The girl nodded and ran off just as Arawynna raced in.

"Midna, we found some sort of strange red fluid on the ground…" she looked at Link. "Oh... Oh my god…"

Link looked up at Midna, then slowly he closed his eyes, passing out. Just as he did a medical team made up of five Twili raced in and looked at Link. The one farthest behind muttered to Arawynna and she nodded and ran off. They could only guess at his physiology, but they knew at least to stitch up the wounds. They took another piece of the bed sheet and started pressing, but Midna snatched it from them and did it herself. Nobody touched him besides her unless it was absolutely necessary.

"We'll take him to the medical room," said one of the medical team, "We can't do much more, but we can watch him from there…"

"NO!" Midna exclaimed, not even trying to hide her panic, "He'll sleep on my bed! I will watch him."

"But princess," he went on, "He's only a…"

"I don't care who he is," she said, "he's sleeping right there!" She pointed at the messy, torn, yet regal bed. The medical team shrugged at each other and picked him up lightly, then placed him on the bed.

"There is nothing more we can do, so we will leave you with him," one of them said, bowing, and then they all left the room through the smashed doorway.

She crawled on the bed and looked down at her sleeping hero, so afraid that this was the last time she would lay eyes on his living figure. However, just as she closed her eyes in dismay, Link took her hand which was folded across her lap.

"Midna…" he whispered, "I'll be okay, don't worry."

Midna looked at him once again, into his beautiful blue eyes, his warm smile. She felt so comforted whenever she looked into them; they just took all of her worry away. She bent down and gave him a light kiss on the forehead, not making a second thought as to what she was doing. Link smiled as her lips gently touched him, and he relaxed his head on the pillow.

Midna lay down on her side, facing him, smiling. She was so glad he was safe here. She wasn't worried about his surviving, she knew he would. The blood had stopped flowing out of his wound, and he was strong, a ferocious yet noble beast. She just lay there, staring at him, taking in his form. Finally, after a long time when she was absolutely sure he was asleep, she scooted over closer to him, lifted her head over his, and lay a soft, light kiss on his lips. Link stirred a little as she withdrew, but his breathing stayed light, as he remained in his unconscious state. She gave a small smile as she slowly moved back to her side of the bed and closed her eyes, drifting off into sleep.

"Link…" she whispered just before she lost consciousness, "…Please don't leave. Please…"


	6. Chapter 6

"Why do I have to wear these stupid robes?" complained Link. He had been changed out of his favored green tunic into a set of long black robes with blue lines coursing all over the arms, legs and chest, resembling Midna's headpiece.

"Because your other set of clothing is bloodstained, torn, and includes a chain mail shirt. It looks like you're riding into combat!" Midna explained frustratingly.

"I don't see a problem with that," he said, shrugging. The entire cloak moved with his shoulders, lifting slightly off the ground, revealing the black slippers Midna had given him. His boots could use with a wash and made too much noise when he walked, not at all proper enough for the castle.

"Well, the Twili will," she said pointedly. "And besides, I think you look very good with that on. It makes you look sage, and with your sword you don't look half bad."

"Thanks," he mumbled. Midna moved from her vanity in the corner of her room over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"You look fine, Link. Now let's go." And with that she started for the door. Link sighed and turned away from the mirror to follow the princess. The farm boy in him had never enjoyed politics. Too much talking, not enough doing. And why was all of this extra stuff needed to look proper? If you're going to talk, just do it. No need to look all pretty. And what was with the way they talked…?

His thoughts were cut off as they entered the meeting hall. Midna sat down at her normal spot at the end of the table, but motioned for Link to stand next to her.

"Bring in Erantaur!" she ordered. In front of her the gigantic double doors opened like the maw of some great beast, and from in between its jaws the mangled form of Erantaur, in his ripped and tattered robes, was spat out. His hands and feet were bound in chain, and a black collar was wrapped around his neck to restrict his magical abilities.

"Erantaur," Midna spat, "This is the last time you will ever see this room," she said,

glaring daggers at him. "However, your life may be spared depending on if you answer our questions…" she said, giving him a sly smile, "…Or not."

Erantaur merely smiled. "We shall see," he said, giving her a grin to match hers. The smile sent a shiver up the princess' spine, but she did not show one bit of disheartenment.

"I'll skip the official crap. Who was sponsoring you in this traitorous endeavor?"

There was a short pause, but then he lowered his head to look at his feet. "Them." He said, a slight laugh edging into his voice.

"Who are _they_?"

Erantaur seemed to be going into hysterics. His voice hinted more and more at insanity as he talked. "_Them_! They just are! It's like an operation without a head! There is no one in charge! They just gave me some of their fighters to kill you with! They convinced me that it would be so easy… Until he came!" He pointed a vile finger at Link. "That disgusting light dweller!"

Link took a step back, but quickly recovered. "Good," he said, "I hope I get to run my blade through more of those wretched things." He held up his blade and pointed it at the former council member.

Erantaur went pale. "That… That's…" he stuttered, but no words came out.

Link merely looked at him. "The sword of Twilight," he said, finishing his sentence.

The entire council stared in awe. In all of the excitement, they hadn't noticed Link's sword, which now seemed almost to glow with a black aura.

"How…how on Earth did a disgusting light dweller obtain that sword!" Erantaur shouted in a fit of rage.

"SILENCE!" Midna yelled over Erantaur's cries of protest. "Need I remind you who is under the chains?" she whispered in a deadly voice. Erantaur shut up immediately, but the look of anger never left his face. Link just started twirling around his sword, taunting, daring Erantaur to make another retort. Midna gave him a look to stop, but Link just couldn't help himself. It was as if his body was on autopilot. "You only wish you had the power to wield this blade. But you're too weak!"

Erantaur was nearly foaming at the mouth, and even tried to lunge at Link, but he was restricted by his chains. The young warrior was about to bring the blade down on his head, but Midna stopped him.

"LINK!"

His head turned to meet her gaze, and he slowly let his arms down. He blinked a couple of times, seemingly not knowing what had just happened to him. Midna gave him a concerned look that was quickly swept away as she faced Erantaur. She continued on with the interrogation It didn't make any sense. He shook himself of this feeling and paid attention to the interrogation.

"Now," Midna began, "I will ask you one more time. Who are _they_?"

Erantaur smiled viciously. "I told you before and I will tell you again. They just are! And because they exist, they will rend your flesh from your bone. It's a mindless operation, they exist to kill."

Link let out a snort and opened his mouth to say something, but Midna quickly cut him off with a glare.

"That is not enough information, and you know that. Tell me more!" Midna was getting frustrated now. She knew yelling at Erantaur wasn't going to solve anything, but she needed answers and she needed them now.

Erantaur started to laugh. It was so evil, so maniacal. It sent shivers down Midna's spine, but the princess carefully trained her face to not betray any emotion.

Suddenly, he stopped his cackling and looked straight into Midna's eyes. She just stared back until she saw what had happened. His eyes were gone! Nothing remained but empty sockets, a conclave of black bone.

"Don't you see? I sold my soul to them! And they spared me! Haha, don't you _see._ And no eyes! Heh heh heh…" He snickered at his own terrible joke.

Erantaur's laughing stopped abruptly and was replaced by a sharp scream of pain. Everyone in the room looked at him in confusion. Why had he just cried out like that? Nothing had hurt him…

Then, suddenly, his fingers began to twitch uncontrollably. The twitch moved up into his arm, then into his legs. Finally his entire body was twisting and contorting itself like a rag doll. Then, suddenly, a huge chunk of flesh on his shoulder ripped off, strings of muscle falling off and hanging from his bones. Then part of his side did the same thing, the piece dropping to the ground. It was as if an invisible force was eating him alive. Midna was about to run to Erantaur to shake some answers out of him, but Link restrained him.

"No!" he said, "We don't know what's going on! You could be hurt, or worse, killed!" Midna was easily convinced, and stood next to Link as they helplessly watched their only source of information be torn apart.

Erantaur started spluttering for air as the invisible force attacked his lungs next, sending tiny bits of his organs onto the walls. Soon after, it started gnawing away at his heart, spattering the room with blood. He looked Midna in the eye, with the same piercing look he gave her before. He opened his mouth to say one final thing before he took his final breath.

"They're coming."

Then, suddenly, everything went quiet. Whatever was happening to him had stopped, and he fell limp onto the floor. Link was there, trying to comfort her.

Midna's hands fell to her sides, clenching and unclenching. "I guess that's all we have to work with," she said through her gritted teeth, ignoring Link's concerning voice.

Suddenly, one of the council members let out a scream. A bone with hunks of flesh still attached to it was rising up into the air, which was soon followed by another across the room. The entire room stood in awe as they watched the pieces of his body move autonomously. They began to gravitate towards each other, the last bits of flesh melting off like water onto the floor, dripping against the cold stone. They slowly clicked into place to become the skeleton of the Erantaur, glowing red eyes filling the sockets. His black bones looked perfect and untouched like a museum piece. Then, without warning, it rose its head into the air and let out a roar like a lion, only with screeches interlaced with the horrid sound.

Then, slowly, it lowered its head and stared at Midna and Link. "You see?" he said, "They saved me from their wrath! And I am more powerful than I could ever imagine! Let me show you…"

He turned to one of the council members and lunged for them like a spring-loaded cat. The member was barely able to roll out of the way as he hit the stone wall face-first. He was not deterred at all, and he renewed his chase.

Link would have none of this. He began to wave the sword through the air in intricate motions for not even half of a second, then he pointed it straight towards the ceiling. Then, without warning, a gigantic sword the size of a man fell directly onto Erantaur's skull, smashing it to bits just as he was about to tear out the council member's throat. The rest of his bones fell onto the floor, clacking on the stone like a rain stick. The sword itself disappeared into black smoke.

Once the tension in the room settled, the walls and floor were cleaned and Midna sat down in her throne. "Ladies and gentlemen of the council, I believe that we have no other option than to prepare for war once more. I just wish that I knew when the attack was coming…"

"Six days," said Link, "We have six days, including today, to prepare for battle."

"Battle?!" exclaimed one of the council members, "We can't fight an army of creatures like that! We must flee, while we can!"

"_Quiet!_" exclaimed Midna, "After today's events, we are all too rattled to make any decision. Five days will be plenty of time to prepare the troops if we must, since our army is ready at a moment's notice. For now I think we should take a day to clear our minds."

The council members nodded, and Midna adjourned them before they all got up out of their seats to their rooms. Link escorted Midna back to her room, and they talked on the way there.

"What the hell just happened?!" yelled Midna, not bothering trying to be quiet for the rest of the hallway.

"I think I know…" said Link, "…but I don't think you are going to like it."

"Tell me anyways! I need to know!" She was panting at this point. She didn't know enough. She had to protect her people, but she didn't know enough!

"The ghost who taught me and I talked a lot about the army during our breaks. They are called Corruptors. They take the bodies of other creatures and place a curse on them, turning them into skeletons to be used in their undead army. They once tried to take the sacred realm, but were pushed away by the other evil forces that created the Fused Shadows. And so, they decided to take the roundabout course of taking the world: by force."

Midna slowly became more disheartened as Link spoke. 'How are we supposed to fight an army like this?' she wondered. Suddenly, she dashed for her bedroom and slammed the newly repaired door right in Link's face as he was pursuing her.

"Midna!" he called in after her, but all he could hear was muffled sobbing. "Midna, please let me in!"

No response.

Link felt helpless as he leaned against the wall next to the door. As selfish as it was, he wasn't concerned with the well-being of the Twilight realm at this point. He didn't care about the castle, the people working in it, the inhabitants, or anything. He wanted to take care of Midna. But at this point, it was the one thing that he was unable to do.

The young hero examined his sword, the fine curves that were in the flames, the sharp tips at the ends… It was entrancing, and he ran his finger along the edge. As he reached the tip though, he pricked himself. He inspected the wound and the red blood coming out of it. He licked off the blood and wiped it off on his robe, then began to stare at the blade again.

Suddenly, he realized that his pricked hand was beginning to feel chilly. He looked down at it and found that more blood had come out, but it was different. Instead of the traditional red it should have been, it was purple. He remembered the blood of Erantaur, how it was exactly the same shade his blood was now. He looked at the back of his hand, and found that his veins were turning purple. Then, from the spot he had cut on his hand, his skin began to turn black. He started breathing heavily. "What… what's happening to me?!"

He dropped his sword and pinched his wrist, but he could not stop the black from crawling up his body. He began to scream as he fell down the wall, and Midna quickly bolted out of the door from her room. When she saw what was happening to him, she knelt down beside him. "Are you okay? What's happening?" she asked.

Link could not answer. His body was beginning to feel cold and he started shivering. Thin blue lines began to cover his skin as the black began to crawl over his skin. His screaming suddenly stopped, as the black finished covering him head to toe. He fell from his sitting position to his hands and knees and proceeded to void his stomach of its contents, making a mess on the floor.

Midna quickly pulled him up and sat him down on her bed. "Link," she asked him, "What's going on?"

He slowly raised his head up to look at hers, his blue eyes penetrating her amber ones.

"I…" he stuttered, "I think I'm one of you again."


End file.
